Aschaffenburg, Germany
The Collo Saal was a small but immaculate club. The place was not only spotless, but they even kept their equipment clean and in good repair. That is a rarity in this business. Steve and Static are often troubleshooting and repairing problems with the “house” systems at every venue. And Steve is the best for making even the worst system sound good. “It’s easy to mix on a good system,” Steve will tell you. The hard part about his job is making a bad system work for you, or making a bad room sound good. With twenty-five-plus years on the road, Steve has seen it all.
Prior to the show I catch Robbie intensely inspecting something he has found. He has found a small snail that he adopts (or holds it captive, as Jeff says. He sings, “Tonight there’s gonna be a snail-break, somewhere in this town.) Robbie says the snail, that he names “Blitz,” will be his friend out on the road, since the snail is the only one who understands him. The band gets worried when I tell them that the acid in the slice of tomato Robbie has provided the snail may turn it into ceviche’ overnight. They are also worried that the snail may not live to see the United States. So, Jeff and Frank make me go online in the backstage dressing room to research the lifespan and diet of a snail. They want to make sure Robbie is providing proper nutrition to his new friend. When they are assured that the snail will be o.k., and live another day, their worries turn to the family that the snail left behind. Jeff jokes that the snail’s son will no longer inherit his dad’s shell. He begins to take on the voice of the son, yearning for his father. Other crew and band members jump in with jokes as the pre-show adrenaline really begins to kick in. It’s an ADHD fest that has my eyes watering and my gut aching from laughter.
This show was one of the best on the tour. The guys change their set every night, a rare thing for bands to do. They like to give fans a variety, especially for the fans that travel from city to city to see them. Tonight they start with “Coming Atcha Live” and the crowd goes crazy. After the show, two American army guys come up to me and ask if they could meet the band. They’ve driven two hours from Wiesbaden, Germany, to see the guys. In an accommodating, no-pretense fashion that is typical of Tesla, Brian gives me the okay to send the service men up to the dressing room. The two are, not only, veterans of both Gulf Wars, they are long time Tesla fans, and this meeting has made their day.
(BTW, just checked my Hotmail account (that I rarely use.) Received a note from my bro, Peter, thanking me for missing his B-Day 11 days ago. Sorry Bro, Happy Birthday, you old fart.)
(Another BTW: Burger King a big deal in Germany, they are everywhere. Check out the campaign ads for the company. The Germans sure "Have It [Their] Way."
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